Politehnica Timisoara - English

2009-07-01T09:56:00.000+03:00

This is the squad that was chosen by Mr. Sabau to take part in the pre-season training camp at Debrecen, Hungary. It should be noted that Sanchez and Garcia, who had both been on loan at Gloria Buzau, will be released, while Amuneke should be loaned out somewhere.

Goalkeepers: Pantilimon, Coblis, Taborda
Defenders: Stancu, Bădoi, Luchin, Cisovsky, Nibombe, Latovlevici, Maxim, Bonfim, Mera
Midfielders: Abiodun, Curtean, Alexa, Borbely, Vrsic, Artiom Karamyan, Bourceanu, Claudiu Ionescu, Chitu, Jitaru, Dudas
Forwards: Arman Karamyan, Bucur, Parks, Amuneke, Magera, Mansour

Ioan Ovidiu Sabau, the new Poli manager

2009-06-28T21:41:00.000+03:00

The former Romanian international signed a two year contract with the club this evening. He is coming off a four season adventure at Gloria Bistrita, with whom he achieved fairly average results, albeit with few resources. All in all though, I'd say it's a reasonable choice, as Sabau is well known for his integrity and discipline and he is young enough to strive relentlessly for the almost exaggerated demands of club president Iancu.

It will be interesting to see whether Poli will be allowed to make any transfers, as there is an impending ban that needs to be lifted after some delayed payments to Ionel Ganea and Universitatea Cluj. If everything works out fine, Otelul's midfielder and Romanian international Alexandru "Gattuso" Bourceanu, as well as Gloria Buzau's playmaker Claudiu Ionescu are poised to join the team in the following days. Also, a number of the players loaned out to Gloria Buzau will most likely return, while the rest are rumored to stay one more year on loan, most likely at Sabau's former team, Gloria Bistrita.

Looking for a new beginning

2009-06-19T08:45:00.000+03:00

With the season ending last Saturday, the club is now forced to look ahead. Marian Iancu had a meek attempt to bring Mr. Uhrin back to Poli, but it failed as the Czech manager was not allowed to leave by the Mlada Boleslav owner - despite a 300000 Euro offer. Good to see some things just can't be bought.

The latest rumor is in regard to the former German International Lothar Matthäus, who might just be redirected from Hungarian club Fehervar if the right buttons are pushed. While as a manager Matthäus has not thoroughly failed, his antics off the football pitch (and bench) have generally been criticized and he has been labelled as difficult to work with. It will be interesting to see how this plays out, Mr. Iancu having a clear penchant for either crappy medium profile managers or, particularly, crappy high-profile managers/ex-players. The exception confirms the rule, doesn't it?

RC: Poli - CFR Cluj 0:3 (0:2)

2009-06-14T11:42:00.001+03:00

It was an ugly night for Poli, as the over four thousand fans who flocked to Targu Jiu did little to help the team's cause. Despite a great atmosphere, the white-violets' poor game and some appalling refereeing lead to a sour outcome and violence, as the hatred against the Romanian Football Federation and the frustration of being jerked off all the time mounted into a painful spectacle of anger. Responsibility has to be shared, as the RFF did decide to let Cristi Balaj referee the match, despite loud protests from the Timisoara board, instead of simplying choosing a foreign ref to do the job. The difference in reaction could be seen against Unirea, when Bergonzi destroyed our title chances, but nobody said or did anything because there were no doubts as to the integrity of the man. Sheer ineptitude doesn't really matter.

Otherwise, not much to be said. Poor marking and an undecisive Pantilimon allowed CFR to score first, then Balaj's invented penalty came, then the same Balaj rejected a clearer penalty for Bucur and Poli were pretty clearly out of the running. CFR scored a third after some more lousy marking in the second half, before Vrsic was sent on the pitch and the white-violets started creating some scoring chances. Bucur, Cisovsky, Nibombe and the Karamyan brothers were unable to beat Nuno Claro, and when they finally did, a fan had entered the pitch and the game had to be stopped.

So it's sad and painful and the future is anything but shining brightly on the Northern sky. What can one do but endure?

Poli: Pantilimon (4) - Badoi (4), Cisovsky (6), Nibombe (5), Latovlevici (3) - Stancu (4,5), Alexa (5,5), Borbely (4,5), Art. Karamyan (5) - Bucur (5), Parks (4,5)

Substitutions:

Arm. Karamyan (5) for Badoi (min 45)
Vrsic (6) for Borbely (min 58)
Luchin for Nibombe (min 76)

The Points Are Home

2009-06-11T10:16:00.000+03:00

CAS has awarded Poli its six points, which puts the white-violets second in the league. This means we will be playing in the third qualifying round of the Champions League, but it also means that we wasted a golden opportunity to win the first title in the club's history.

P.S. I added the clips for the matches against Brasov, Urziceni and Dinamo.

FC Brasov - Poli 1:0 (0:0)

2009-06-10T22:01:00.001+03:00

Poli's chances of winning the title were hanging by a thread to begin with and when the goal was conceded, in the 88th minute, it really didn't matter any more. The match was poor in general, with only two meagre scoring opportunities from the white-violets, but there is an excuse, in that the Romanian Cup final from Saturday was worth sacrificing this match.

Not much to say, as mentioned before, the title was lost against Urziceni, and now we are the biggest fools of all. There's still a vague chance that the six points will come our way, in which case we will finish second and head for the qualies in the Champions League. We'll see tomorrow.

Poli: Pantilimon (6) - Bădoi (5,5), Luchin (6,5), Cisovsky (5,5), Latovlevici (4,5) - Stancu (5,5), Arm. Karamyan (5,5), Scutaru (5,5), Borbely (6), Art. Karamyan (5,5) - Curtean (5)

Substitutions:

Vrsici (6) for Scutaru (min 52)
Bucur (5,5) for Art. Karamyan (min 64)
Parks for Arm. Karamyan (min 81)

Goal Hadnagy (min 88):

Ilyes chance (min 52):

Poli - Unirea Urziceni 1:2 (1:0)

2009-06-01T17:20:00.001+03:00

Not much to say, just sad. A huge missed opportunity.

Poli: Pantilimon (5,5) - Badoi (5), Luchin (5,5), Cisovsky (5), Latovlevici (5) - Stancu (5), Alexa (5,5), Borbely (5,5), Art. Karamyan (5) - Bucur (6,5), Magera (5)

Substitutions:

Parks (5) for Borbely (min 65)
Curtean for Art. Karamyan (min 79)

Goal Gigel Bucur (min 29):

Urziceni penalty (min 50):

Goal Bilasco (min 60):

Bucur gets downed in the penalty area(min 73):

Pantilimon save (min 90):

Poli - Steaua 1:0 (1:0)

2009-05-22T23:26:00.000+03:00

The white-violets outdid themselves today in terms of risky play, by scoring in the first half and then defending for 45 minutes in a row. I don't think the team managed to pass the half-way line more than ten times in the second half and our only shot on goal came in the 90th minute. But it was enough, as Steaua were as impotent as ever, wasting numerous corner-kicks and free-kicks, despite a glimmer of determination from their side.
The match was decided by an inspirational goal by Parks, who dribbled past two defenders before his shot caught a deflection to go past Zapata in the 32nd minute. And it was enough for today.

Poli: Pantilimon (6) - Badoi (5), Nibombe (6), Cisovsky (6,5), Latovlevici (5,5) - Stancu (5,5), Borbely (5), Alexa (6), Art. Karamyan (5,5) - Bucur (5,5), Parks (6,5)

Schimbări:

Abiodun (5,5) pentru Badoi (min 66).
Magera (5,5) pentru Parks (min 71).
Scutaru pentru Borbely (min 90+2).

Parks goal(min 32):

Golanski shot (min 19):

Borbely shot (min 20):

Abiodun miss(min 90):

Dinamo - Poli 3:1 (2:1)

2009-05-18T18:06:00.000+03:00

I didn't bear to watch this match, because I knew it would have been too hard to endure a loss now. Unfortunately, although the white-violets scored first through Bucur in the 10th minute, three mistakes (Nibombe, Pantilimon and Parks) lead to three avoidable goals, two just before half-time, one immediately after. The lesson of effeciency, which Poli delivered so well in the Romanian Cup, was taught back, for the second time this season, by Dinamo.

The team still has some chance of fighting for the league title if the points come back our way, but that is a very big "if", so perhaps it would be better to just hope for a win against Steaua and see how things develop from there.

Poli: Pantilimon - Bădoi, Luchin, Nibombe, Latovlevici - Stancu, Borbely, Cisovsky, Curtean - Magera, Bucur

Substitutions:

Parks for Nibombe (min 45)
Maxim for Curtean (min 60)
Abiodun for Magera (min 83)

Goal Bucur (min 10):

Goal Ndoye (min 40):

Goal M. Niculae (min 45):

Goal Ndoye (min 48):

Pantilimon save (min 12):

Niculae miss (min 19):

Stancu shot (min 36):

Pantilimon save (min 79):

Poli - Otelul Galati 1:0 (1:0)

2009-05-09T19:33:00.000+03:00

It was a tough win today, especially given that Poli tried to defend a slender lead and almost ended up being equalized in the last minutes of the match.

After a first good chance from Otelul after fifteen minutes, Parks should've scored in the 20th, but his shot wasn't on goal. Just one minute later, Bucur did well to take the ball of a Galati defender and his shot clipped the post before entering into goal! The Poli striker could have made it two in the 31st minute, but his shot from a one on one position hit the side netting.
The second half belonged to Otelul, especially after the white-violets failed on a few occasions to scored a second goal. Two Pantilimon blunders lead to the away side's best scorind chances, but Latovlevici and particularly Cisovsky were there to save the day. In the end, Stancu could have scored, but his shot was saved by Kolev - yet, it was enough for Poli in what should be an important win in this season finale.

Poli: Pantilimon (5) - Bădoi (5), Nibombe (6), Cisovsky (7), Latovlevici (5,5) - Stancu (6), Scutaru (5,5), Magera (6), Art. Karamyan (5,5) - Bucur (6,5), Parks (5)

Substitutions:

Curtean (5,5) for Parks (min 57)
Vrsic (5,5) for Magera (min 68)
Maxim for Karamyan (min 90+3)

Gigel Bucur goal (min 23):

Ibeh chance (min 14):

Parks miss (min 22):

Bucur miss (min 31):

Pantilimon error (min 86):

Stancu (min 91):

CFR Cluj - Poli 2:0 (0:0)

2009-05-06T23:21:00.000+03:00

The white-violets just didn't have enough left in the tank to win this match against CFR, and the difference was made in terms of efficiency: the home side scored on both real scoring chances, while Poli missed five very good opportunities. Defeat is the price that has to be paid for that.

The team's chances to win the league are clearly diminished, particularly if the six points taken by FIFA will not be returned by the end of this month. Nevertheless, it is perhaps too much to be expected from an unexperienced manager and a squad that's been plagued with injuries of late. To my mind, even finishing on the podium is a great achievement.

Poli: Pantilimon (5) - Stancu (5), Luchin (5,5), Nibombe (5,5), Latovlevici (4) - Abiodun (5,5), Cisovsky (5,5), Borbely (5,5), Art. Karamyan (5,5) - Bucur (5), Magera (5,5)

Parks (5,5), Curtean (5,5) and Rusic replaced Abiodun, Nibombe and Bucur.

Goal Ruiz (min 50):

Goal Dubarbier (min 73):

Bucur miss (min 6):

Bucur miss (min 59):

Misses from Stancu and Bucur (min 66):

Magera scissor-kick (min 86):

Poli - Farul 3:2 (1:1)

2009-05-02T21:32:00.000+03:00

It looks a lot like Poli is a team that mimics whoever our opponents are. So when we played Dinamo, we put in a great performance, suitable for the opponent. Today, similar to the matches against Bistrita, Gaz Metan, Otopeni, we played terrible, missed countless chances and almost lost two points to a team that's almost relegated. Not to mention the terrible mistakes made in defence.

Balaj awarded Poli a penalty in the 10th minute, after an alleged handball which did not really happen and Bucur converted. Then the white-violets missed four good scoring opportunities, through Cisovsky, Luchin and twice Bucur. Farul first showed they may be capable of something after the half-hour mark and they completely took advantage of the lack of concentration shown by Poli's defenders. After two saves from Pantilimon, the goalie let the ball slip through his hands in the 45th minute and allowed the away side to equalize.
Poli played similarly in the second half and after two chances from Cisovsky and Nibombe, both saved by the oppositon's goalie, who had a great day, Ben Tekloh sent the ball in his own goal following a Curtean corner. The white-violet's advantage only lasted one minute, as Nibombe and Borbely failed to communicate and Chico easily slotted the ball in. Luck struck again in Poli's favour when another Curtean corner somehow reached Bucur, after some really poor defending from Farul, and the striker scored to make it three. The away side almost equalized in the 90th minute, but their goal was correctly disallowed for an offside position, granting Poli a much needed, if a bit shameful, win. Yet, at this moment in the championship, gathering points is all that matters.

Poli: Pantilimon (5) - Stancu (5,5), Luchin (5,5), Nibombe (5,5), Latovlevici (5) - Abiodun (5,5), Cisovsky (6), Borbely (5), Maxim (5) - Bucur (6), Parks (5,5)

Curtean (6), Rusic (5) and Magera (6) replaced Maxim, Parks and Borbely.

Bucur goal (min 10):

Rusmir goal (min 45):

Ben Tekloh own goal (min 63):

Chico goal (min 64):

Bucur goal (min 71):

Penalty (min 8):

Cisovsky chance (min 20):

Bucur chance (min 26):

Rusmir shot (min 30):

Latovlevici mistake (min 33):

Cisovsky shot (min 54):

Nibombe shot (min 63):

Curtean shot (min 81):

Farul goal - offside (min 90):

Magera's shot saved (min 91):

Romanian Cup Final

2009-04-30T15:03:00.000+03:00

It will be CFR Cluj who will face Poli in the final of the Romanian Cup on the 13th of June, the most likely venue being Targu-Jiu.

RC: Poli - Dinamo 4:1 (1:0)

2009-04-28T22:45:00.006+03:00

We had to wait twelve years for this win, but it's here now. A match like this, with such a background to it in general, is always special, no matter how much the Romanian Football Federation try to suck the life out of it. Yesterday, it was through their decision not to allow fans to be in the stadium, as a "punishment" for Dinamo - despite the fact that the match was played on neutral ground and any such punishment was to be applied at the first match on home soil for the Bucharest team. At least that's what the rules said, but it's not like rules matter to these guys, the puppet masters of Romanian football.

Poli played perfectly yesterday, thanks to both Balint's tactical outlook and the player's determination and inspiration. The white-violets defended very well and took their first chance to make it into a goal, in the 27th minute, as Bucur beat the offside trap, dribbled past an opponent, hit the post, and the ball rebounded to Magera who finished coolly - and he could've added another one to his tally, but missed the shot a few minutes later. Dinamo just went on pushing, but they didn't really create any good scoring chances, although Cristea came pretty close on a few occasions.
The second half was a joy to behold. Poli had clearly learned its lesson well and in the 61st minute, Maxim did well on the left wing, crossed poorly, the ball rebounded to Latovlevici who sent another cross in and Abiodun was just at the right place to smash it beyond the goalkeeper! Dinamo managed to pull one back in the 71st minute, with a bit of luck, as Cristea's shot tricked Pantilimon, but the "tension" only lasted a few minutes - Parks did what he wanted with the Dinamo defense and then passed perfectly to Bucur, who had not problem finishing! Izovranu saw a red card in the 84th minute, before Maxim's free-kick was headed into goal by Nibombe, to seal the match at a more than impressive 4-1!

It really was one of those days when football seems to turn everything around. The white-violets are now on course for both the league title and the Romanian Cup, hopefully not too much given how many matches are left to be played and the precarious physical condition of some of our players. But today is really a day to be framed, just one of those perfect days.

Poli: Pantilimon (6) - Stancu (6,5), Luchin (6,5), Nibombe (6,5), Latovlevici (6,5) - Abiodun (6,5), Borbely (6), Cisovsky (6,5), Curtean (6) - Bucur (7), Magera (6,5)

Maxim (6,5), Parks (6,5) and Scutaru came on for Magera, Curtean and Bucur.

Goal Magera (min 27):

Goal Abiodun (min 61):

Goal Cristea (min 72):

Goal Bucur (min 79):

Goal Nibombe (min 86):

Gloria Bistrița - Poli 0:1 (0:0)

2009-04-28T22:45:00.003+03:00

A late victory, thanks to Alexandru Curtean's goal in the 90th minute. Details to follow.

Poli - Poli Iași 3:0 (1:0)

2009-04-22T22:14:00.000+02:00

It was an easy win today for Poli, although the away side came after a win at home against leaders Dinamo Bucharest. Arman Karamyan's early goal put the white-violets ahead at half-time, and then Bucur scored after an impressive effort in the 55th minute, before Artiom Karamyan was well positioned to push in a Magera shot that had been saved by the goalie.

Poli: Pantilimon (6) - Stancu (6), Luchin (5,5), Cisovsky (6), Latovlevici (6) - Curtean (5), Alexa (6,5), Borbely (6), Art. Karamyan (5,5) - Bucur (6,5), Arm. Karamyan (6,5)

Magera (6), Abiodun (6,5) and Rusic replaced Curtean, Arm. Karamyan and Bucur.

Goal Arm. Karamyan (min 12):

Goal Bucur (min 55):

Goal Art. Karamyan (min 84):

Borbely chance (min 32):

Bucur chance (min 36):

Cristea chance (min 68):

Pantilimon save (min 72):

Cristea chance (min 74):

Magera miss (min 90):

FC Vaslui - Poli 4:3 (2:2)

2009-04-22T22:10:00.000+02:00

It was an unfortunate loss for Poli on Saturday, as the white-violets were 2-0 up after ten minutes thanks to a Bucur double, but relinquished their lead following some poor refereeing and lapses of concentration in defence. Although Art. Karamyan managed to put Poli up in front again, Vaslui pounced back and turned the game around in the end, as Balint made a couple of tactical mistakes and the team suffered from severe fatigue (following the 2-0 win against Gloria Bistrita, in the Romanian Cup).

Poli: Pantilimon (5,5) - Badoi (4), Luchin (4,5), Cisovsky (5), Latovlevici (5,5) - Arm. Karamyan (6), Curtean (6), Alexa (4,5), Art. Karamyan (6) - Bucur (6,5), Magera (5,5)

Amuneke (4,5) and Rusici replaced Arm. Karamyan and Art. Karamyan.

RC: Poli - Gloria Bistrita 2:0 (0:0)

2009-04-16T00:02:00.000+02:00

Poli took their time to win this Romanian Cup match, as both goals came during added time to the second half. Although the match on the whole was pretty poor, there were a few good scoring chances and, in the end, it was Magera's and Curtean's goals that were decisive.

Next up, the semifinal.

Poli: Pantilimon (6,5) - Badoi (6), Luchin (6), Nibombe (6), Latovlevici (6,5) - Arm. Karamyan (5,5), Alexa (5,5), Borbely (5,5), Art. Karamyan (5,5) - Bucur (5,5), Magera (6,5)

Curtean (6,5), Amuneke (5,5) and Rusic replaced Borbely, Bucur and Art. Karamyan.

Magera goal (min 90):

Curtean goal (min 91):

C. Borbely hits the post (min 5):

Magera chance (min 25):

Pantilimon save (min 56):

Silvasan chance (min 77):

Amuneke shot (min 84):

Rusic miss (min 85):

Poli - Universitatea Craiova 1:0 (0:0)

2009-04-15T23:48:00.000+02:00

In the last match day, the white violets did very well in ensuring a win against in form Craiova. Moreover, it was a great football match to watch, both in terms of quality and in terms of drama.

Poli had a series of good chances in the first half, with the away team coming close on counter-attacks. The half's highlight was Craiova missed penalty, in the 45th minute, as Borbely's foul in the area offered Stoica the opportunity to score, but Pantilimon managed to save!
The second half started in the best manner possible, as Poli offered a prompt response and scored, after Bucur jinxed past Stoica and Arman Karamyan was there to tap the ball in. The match remained exciting as both teams could have scored again, but neither Costea for Craiova, nor Parks for Poli managed to put the ball past the opposing keepers from only a few meters away.

Poli: Pantilimon (7) - Bădoi (6), Cisovsky (7), Nibombe (6,5), Latovlevici (6,5) - Arm. Karamyan (7), Alexa (6), Borbely (5), Art. Karamyan (6) - Bucur (6,5), Magera (6,5)

Luchin (6), Vrsic and Parks replaced Cisovsky, Magera and Bucur.

Arm. Karamyan goal (min 48):

Bucur chance (min 1):

Costea chance (min 10):

Art. Karamyan shot (min 28):

Wobay header (min 34):

Missed penalty Stoica (min 45):

Latovlevici chance (min 67):

Pantilimon save (min 83):

Parks miss (min 92):

Rapid - Poli 0:2 (0:2)

2009-04-08T21:36:00.000+02:00

After five worrying performances comes this gem of a match, a well deserved victory over the believed in-form Rapid. The key to this win was undoubtedly the team's determination on the whole and, in particular, the presence of Arman Karamyan in the first eleven.

The Armenian midfielder right (for the day) scored both goals of the match, following two great passes/crosses from Magera and Artiom Karamyan. The rest of the match was defined by the good performance of Cisovsky, in defense, and Pantilimon's four important saves. It's especially satisficing to see the young Poli goalkeeper progress so quickly into a good goalkeeper, considering the fact that just over a year ago he was still having a hard time in the Romanian second league.

This win should put Timisoara manager Balint at ease, after coming under quite a bit of pressure following his debut in charge of the white-violets. Surely though, this win will have to be followed with one over Craiova, in the weekend, who are truly flying high, after their win today against league leaders Dinamo (2-0).

Poli: Pantilimon (7) - Badoi (5,5), Nibombe (6), Cisovsky (7), Latovlevici (6) - Arm. Karamyan (7), Alexa (6,5), Borbely (5,5), Art. Karamyan (6,5) - Bucur (6), Magera (6,5)

Au mai intrat Parks, Vrsici și Curtean, înlocuindu-i pe Bucur, Magera și Arm. Karamyan.

Goal Arm. Karamyan (min. 19):

Goal Arm. Karamyan (min. 30):

Spadacio shot (min. 15):

Lazar hits the post (min. 22):

Borbely error (min. 50):

Poli - Gloria Buzău 4:1 (2:1)

2009-04-04T15:55:00.000+02:00

Despite the score, today's match was just as bad - if not worse - as the one two weeks ago. With Artiom Karamyan on the bench, resting after a busy international week, the white-violets had a tough time against last placed Gloria Buzau, who showed up with a completely different team compared to the encounter against Dinamo, as all the players loaned by Poli at Gloria were left at home.

With this advantage, there was no question as to who the winner would be. Bucur scored the first after a Buzau defender commited a handball in the penalty area in the 9th minute and Maxim made it two in the 40th, when the Buzau goalie made a huge blunder. The away side got one back just before half-time, but Bucur scored his second of the day in the 63rd minute to seal the three points. The last goal came from Arman Karamyan, who tapped in an easy ball, but the Armenian deserved it, as he played a very fine game - just like Magera and Nibombe.

Poli: Pantilimon (5,5) - Bădoi (5), Cisovsky (6), Nibombe (6,5), Maxim (5) - Curtean (5), Alexa (6), Borbely (5,5), Karamyan (6,5) - Magera (6,5), Bucur (6)

Parks (5,5), Vrsic and Rusic replaced Curtean, Magera and Bucur.

CS Otopeni - Poli 2:2 (1:0)

2009-04-04T15:54:00.001+02:00

What can one say after such a poor showing, especially in terms of willpower? After a good start of the match for the white-violets, Otopeni get away through Caramarin and score, and suddenly we're nowhere. It takes another goal from the home side to wake up some of the players and thanks to Magera, Cisovsky and Parks, the latter bagging two goals, Poli got away with a point from the team placed second to last. Worst of all, the football is bad.

Poli: Pantilimon (5) - Bădoi (5,5), Luchin (5), Cisovsky (6), Latovlevici (5) - Stancu (5,5), Alexa (5), Art. Karamyan (6), Curtean (6) - Bucur (5), Magera (6)

Parks (6,5) and Arm. Karamyan replaced Curtean and Bucur.

Press Release

2009-03-26T01:55:00.001+02:00

FIFA has fallen into the corruption pitfall dominating the Romanian football.
An entire city is struggling for justice!

The supporters of Politehnica Timisoara (and the Romanians in general) are fed up with football corruption. A multi-language website reveals the injustice whose victims they are. The Romanian Football Federation (RFF) is an accomplice to this injustice? FIFA has been misled by fraudulent documents!

It all happens in Timisora, Romania, and it is concerning the club Politehnica Timisoara (currently playing under the name of FC Timisoara), a club with a long tradition in the Romanian football.

An Italian businessman, for a very short time the owner of this club, abandoned the team at the end of 2001 but waited for the club to reach a certain level of success (even playing in the UEFA cup), only to claim alleged rights over the club's name, record and colors. This was possible only after he was assured by the complicity of some of the RFF (Romanian Football Federation) members. Based on the fraudulent documents obtained from RFF (proven facts!) and their tacit consent he received from CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) a favourable decision that forced Politehnica Timisoara to change its name and colors.

RFF is unwilling to defend the club, because this would mean recognizing this fraud, that was made possible with the complicity of certain members with leading positions in the Romanian football. Turning back on a wrong decision would mean admitting their own mistakes, and that would affect their credibility.

Furthermore, FIFA has sanctioned the club with a 6 points penalty for delaying the implementation of the CAS decision, denying the club's top-ranking position (earned on the pitch) in Romanian football league.

An entire city, region and its inhabitants are in a state of shock. This affair has even been the subject of questions and debate in the Romanian Parliament. More than 10 000 people peacefuly marched on the streets of Timisoara.

It is for the first time in football history when a football club has its identity stollen and it is not allowed to use its own colors: white-purple. All these things happen in Romania and FIFA/RFF keep their eyes closed! See the appeal for justice of an entire region (and the evidence of injustice) on: http://www.justiceforpoli.com

Poli - Gaz Metan Mediaș 0:0 (0:0)

2009-03-22T01:50:00.000+02:00

I'm sorry for the one week delay, but it kind of slipped my mind to tell the rest of the world about this frustrating mishap. The white-violets missed the chance to come within range of league leaders Dinamo, after wasting a fair amount of scoring opportunities and slowly fading towards the end of the match. The main problem is that Poli isn't playing what they should be, although it would be wrong to ignore the merits of Gaz Metan (who, by the way, beat second placed Urziceni today). Hopefully, tomorrow's match against Otopeni will be different.

Poli: Pantilimon (6,5) - Badoi (5,5), Luchin (6), Cisovsky (6,5), Latovlevici (6) - Abiodun (5), Borbely (5,5), Curtean (6), Art. Karamyan (5) - Bucur (5,5), Parks (5,5)

Vrsic (5,5), Amuneke (5) and Rusic came on to replace Abiodun, Karamyan and Parks.

Just a clip

2009-03-12T23:08:00.001+02:00

(2008 meeting in Piata Operei)